by David Morgan-Mar, Kenneth Peters, & Constantine Thomas

Conception

"I was quite looking forward to [Blue Shadow], if (as Kenneth
Peters suggests on his web site) a significant chunk of the book would
concern Europa and its world ocean."
-- Constantine Thomas, Yahoo! Groups Transhuman Space group, January 12,
2002

Transhuman Space: Under Pressure began as an idea named
Blue Shadow on David Pulver's initial list of planned
Transhuman Space titles. It was to deal with life on and
under the oceans of 2100, building on the vast technological and social
upheavals outlined in the core book. The name was changed to
Under Pressure during production, to avoid confusion with
GURPS Blue Planet, an excellent conversion of Fantasy
Flight Games' aquatic campaign world.

When the core book was released in January, 2002,
Blue Shadow had not yet been assigned an author.
Constantine and I (DMM) were talking on the
Pyramid Chat
soon after, when David Pulver appeared. Knowing
Constantine was a planetary scientist, he asked him if he would like to
write Blue Shadow. Although keen on the idea, Constantine
felt such a project would be too large for him to take on alone, and the
conversation turned to other matters.

Afterward, I approached Constantine with the suggestion that we
collaborate on a proposal for the book, since I felt I could handle the
Earth-based material if he could do the extraterrestrial stuff. We sent
a query to David Pulver, who suggested we add Kenneth Peters to our group,
as a GURPS Vehicles expert qualified to write the Modular
Vehicle Design System that was required. With that, our triumvirate was
born.

Brainstorming

"Yes, you too can play a clam. No, not uplifted or mutated or psionic or
magical or a refugee from another universe. Just an average, everyday clam.
But! It can be given an Aerospace Piloting skill set and be uploaded as a
Shadow and then downloaded into a toaster! Does the part where you stick
the bread in count as a Flesh Pocket? Hey, stop looking at me!"
-- Kenneth Peters, e-mail to David Pulver, February 12, 2002

The easy part done, we had to come up with a proposal stuffed to the gills
with so many cool ideas that The Powers That Be could hardly say "no." In
this stage were born many of the concepts that made it into the book,
such as aquacrete, cetanism, and squidpacks. We also discussed and rejected
some ideas, such as introducing native macroscopic life to Europa, and
bioships. Although submarine bioships -- vehicles grown as genemod organisms
-- sounded cool, the difficulty of making them suitably pressurized to
carry human passengers in the sea forced us to conclude that they would be
too expensive and impractical to be realistic.

We developed the Calamarine, a gengineered squid bioshell, at this stage.
It was originally envisioned to be based on the giant squid, some 80 feet
long, with a biological blue-green laser weapon to complement its already
awesome natural armament -- an idea that caused Kenneth to draw comparisons
to Dr. Evil's "sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads."
The vulnerability of such a large creature to heavy weaponry made us
rethink the concept, and we finally settled on the smaller Humboldt
squid-based "shock troop" design seen in the book.

Execution

"There are three planned books on Earth: Fifth Wave, Broken Dreams, and Blue Shadow. The three books form one of
those 'balanced triangle' things like they use to promote healthy diet and
stuff. If I were to summarize each in one word, I'd say Fifth Wave is
'Technology,' Broken Dreams is 'Society' -- and Blue Shadow is
'Environment.'
-- David Morgan-Mar, Pyramid chat, May 31, 2002

I said that before I had seen a copy of Fifth Wave.
Jon F. Zeigler later said to me that he thought Fifth Wave was
about society too, and I agree with him, though I would add that it is how
society has reacted to technology. Nonetheless, the overlying theme of
Under Pressure is the interaction of transhuman technology
with the environment -- a theme only touched on by the other books.

We used this theme to drive much of the material in the book. The oceanic
focus and the interaction of humanity with the environment, both on Earth
and off it, provided background or inspiration for many of the technologies,
organizations, and occurrences that we developed. Extrapolations from
present-day trends led to sometimes frightening conclusions, that had to
be tempered or avoided by technology.

An overriding constraint was fitting our material into the
Transhuman Space canon. Four books had been released and
another four had been through playtest by the time we finished writing, so
there was a wealth of material to draw on, and to be consistent with!

The ecoterrorist organization Blue Shadow caused particular problems. From
the core book we knew that it was "preservationist," yet it was dedicated
to protecting and rescuing uplifted sea creatures -- a seeming inconsistency
with the ideals of Preservationism. We solved this by mixing the pan-sapient
rights meme into Blue Shadow's brand of Preservationism, providing
justification for saving existing uplifts while at the same time campaigning
against their creation. This also neatly explained Blue Shadow's aversion to
inflicting casualties of any kind.

Writing underwater material to be consistent with existing GURPS
rules was a real challenge. We caused more than our fair share of gray hairs
on Dr. Kromm's head as we bounced rule interpretations, rewrites, reality
checks, and new rules off him. We worked closely with Jon F. Zeigler and Bill
Stoddard on these issues, so we could have a consistent set of underwater
rules with GURPS Blue Planet. Anthony Jackson was a great help
with many technical and rules issues.

The mechanics of writing the manuscript were complicated by the fact that
we had three authors . . . on three different continents. Thankfully, the
manuscript divided fairly neatly into parts that we could work on
independently before integrating them into a whole. Despite being in
widely separated time zones, we often had long private discussions on the
Pyramid Chat about various ideas and passages of writing. This particular
piece of 2002 technology proved invaluable in the assembling of the book,
by allowing virtual meetings, without which our cooperative effort would
have been almost impossible. The telepresence world of 2100 has its
beginnings in the here and now.

Real life intruded on the writing process in interesting ways. I lost my
job to the downturn in the I.T. industry. Constantine was busy writing and
revising his Ph.D. thesis -- on the internal structure of the Jovian
moons. His Europan ocean model was developed with state-of-the-art
planetary modelling software created for his thesis, and will hopefully
be the subject of a scientific paper! Kenneth, meanwhile, received
involuntary recall orders for active duty with the USMC in Hawaii. Some of
his emails from there got lost, and we were imagining his C.O. leafing
through detailed technical statistics of military submersibles that had been
intercepted being sent from Sergeant Peters' account . . . On the plus side
he had better access to military periodicals and the knowledge of the
logistics officers he works with (who as active duty and reserve Marine
officers also had a great breadth of experience in other fields).

The Crunchy Bits

Even though our page count expanded from 128 to 144, and finally 160 pages,
there was a good deal of material we couldn't squeeze in. And then there
was some material we came up with that simply shouldn't have gone
in . . .

"And today, a pod of environmentalist Pilot Whales beached themselves
near a crowded human city in protest at the simians' continuing destruction
of the oceans. As usual, the humans were too stupid to realize what they
were doing and put them back in the water. A repeat protest to hammer the
point home ended in tragedy when all 47 whales died after the humans couldn't
be bothered with them any more."
-- Pilot Whale Sonar News Channel

Character Types

We cut the following two character types, suitable for many
Transhuman Space campaigns, from the manuscript.
The names are Russian.

Boyevik ("Mobster")

"Yeah, I'm a Triad and an ethnic Russian, so what? Haven't you heard
that crime went international over a century ago? Hey, don't look at me
like that, we serve a useful function for society. There will always be
losers and dropouts -- I don't care how long people live or what their
bodies look like or even how much money they have in the bank -- we give
these people a purpose and control them at the same time. Why do you think
we're called organized crime? The only alternative is a bunch of
independent rabble looting and pillaging like mad dogs."

Whoever said, "crime doesn't pay" was never a criminal. You maintain
"investments" around the world that make you more money then a small
corporation. Hundreds of millions of dollars pass through your hands each
month; you're not risking your life for nickel and dime racketeering and
prostitution. You dabble in funding ecoterrorists in Nigeria so they disrupt
a competitor's mining platforms and recently blackmailed a genetic engineer
at VeldtKorp so you can sell their newest proteus nanovirus developments to
your contacts in the Martian Triads. Just a few more lucrative operations
and you'll move up and join the "old men" who pull your strings and really
make things happens. In your mind there is very little difference between
what you do and the CEO of a multinational corporation, although the CEO may
have less assassins on the payroll.

Advantages: Allies and Contacts are important. Alternate Identities
and Zeroed can be instrumental in evading arrest and your competitors. Wealth
(including levels of Multimillionaire) are appropriate, but if it was just
money you wanted it would have been easier becoming a corporate manager.

Disadvantages: Enemy, Greed, Involuntary Duty (to your cartel),
Paranoia, Secret. Bloodlust and Code of Honor (stays bought) are common
with some of the older gangsters.

Volk ("Wolf")

"A lot of people have moved to the oceans to escape the stifling control
of governments, corporations, their parents, the media, whatever. Many
escaped the tyranny of nanny states like the United States and most of
Europe. But they still have problems they need dealt with, justice still
needs to be served at its most basic level -- an eye for an eye, a tooth for
a tooth. The sheep of the world need to hire wolves like me to keep the
other predators at a safe distance. It can get a bit messy, but that's why I
charge a premium."

Problems have solutions, and that's where you come in. You're a professional
contract enforcer, sometimes working for criminal syndicates but usually
doing your best to keep your clients safe by force of reputation. Those who
haven't lived a day outside their carefully managed arcologies call it
extortion; to the inhabitants of a floating shantytown off the New Mumbai
arcology you're the closest thing to the law they have. Communities
occasionally hire you to keep the peace, and those are the jobs you like the
best. At least then you can pretend you're not just a legbreaker working for
the highest bidder. You make your living based on the fact that people trust
you to complete your contract to the letter. Some people get the idea they
can bribe you out of fulfilling your contract; those people usually end up
dead.

Disadvantages: Bloodlust, Code of Honor (stays bought), Contacts. You
may have a Higher Purpose.

Skills: Brawling, Guns, Interrogation, Intimidation, Law, Streetwise.

Hardware and Wetware

Transhuman Space is a mix of conservative and optimistic views
of the future. The concepts behind almost all of the technology are either
already being experimented with or there are programs underway to explore
those possibilities. Much of the technology in Chapter 6: Aquatic Technology
we'll probably see by 2020 in some form or another. Much of what looks like
science fiction (like the shark repelling field generators) you can buy now!

I (Kenneth Peters) used GURPS Vehicles heavily in developing the hardware,
partly because it gives a starting benchmark for performance at various Tech
Levels, but mainly because it helps keep the technology consistent. I've
listed some of the technical assumptions we used in Chapter 6 so you have an
idea of what we were smoking to get the statistics.

Oceanic Energy: The OTEC generator was originally a vehicle
module in the Appendix (based on the rules in GURPS Vehicles
Expansion 1), but we decided that it was so massive and limited in
application that it fit better in Chapter 5. The other generators
are not designed with GURPS Vehicles -- because that book has
no system to cover them.

Microgenerators: There were some questions as to what the point of
these were compared to batteries. One reason is that they are solidly TL8
and thus readily available to Fourth Wave individuals. Weight tends to
be higher overall, but the generators are built with a structure and
armored -- they become more advantageous over longer periods.

Muscle Generators: This was built as an extra-light steel structure
with a 0.4-kW muscle engine, cycle seat, and integral 0.4 kWh hour battery.
Surface area was based on a volume of 0.5 cf (components volume is 0.2 cf).
We bloated the cf listed as that's the minimum it takes to actually
operate -- consider it an Exposed "Very Cramped" Standing Room requirement.

Lift Bags: Lift bags are "built" by multiplying their inflated
surface area by 0.3 to get weight and 10 to get cost. Hardcore gearheads
will note this is 100 times the gasbag weight and cost on p. VE20.
This multiplier gives good results matching real lift bags at TL6 and TL7.

Personal Transport: The finpants and finsocks were built using
GURPS Vehicles, albeit taking some liberties with determining
what hydrodynamic lines they have.

Supercavitating Minitorpedoes: Pure GURPS Vehicles
designs, with the one exception that underwater drag was not
rounded. I based their volume on the weight of the standard missiles in
Transhuman Space so they could be fired from standard
launchers. I divided their weight by 50 to get volume
in cubic feet, then consulted the surface area calculation on p. VE18
(the chart does not have enough detail for stuff this small).

15mm: 0.002 cf body (0.1 sf) with advanced submarine lines.
Structure is extra-light metal-matrix composite with the supercavitating
option and is sealed. The warhead is a 15mm small warhead. It has two solid
rockets, a 10 lb., 0.017 minute boost rocket to reach supercavitation speed
and a 2 lb., 0.035 minute endurance sustainer rocket bought as a guided
missile (×2 cost). Remember that the boost rocket has halved thrust
underwater! Underwater drag is 0.0125.

30mm: 0.016 cf body (0.38 sf) with advanced submarine lines.
Structure is extra-light metal-matrix composite with the supercavitating
option and is sealed. The warhead is a 30mm small warhead. It has two solid
rockets, a 90 lb., 0.017 minute boost rocket to reach supercavitation speed
and a 35 lb., 0.05 minute endurance sustainer rocket bought as a guided
missile (×2 cost). Underwater drag is 0.0475.

Note: Hydrojet powered designs are problematic with straight
GURPS Vehicles because of their minimum weight (even if that
is ignored they have horrible performance at this size).

Lost Technology: Direct Blood Oxygenation

This was an interesting idea that simply didn't pass muster as far
as feasibility and competitiveness with liquid breathing and rebreathers.

Direct Blood Oxygenation Unit: The blood oxygenator bypasses conventional
respiration completely, and does not interfere with cetacean-analog diving
reflexes. The unit consists of an invasive routing system that takes
deoxygenated blood out of the body, a filtration and gas injection unit
using the same electrolysis technology as artificial gills, and a return catheter to supply freshly oxygenated blood back to the body. Gas partial
pressures are computer controlled, so there is no risk of oxygen toxicity
or the bends. Does not interfere with the Oxygen Storage advantage, unlike
other breathing systems. Purchase as an artificial gill with ×2 weight and
×10 cost.

Vehicles

Vehicles suitable for adventuring tend to be military or utility vessels,
but we wanted to include (and there was considerable demand for) civilian
cargo vessels. Unfortunately, the last minute cut to word count meant that
the cargo container text was shortened considerably, and two cargo vehicle
designs were dropped. These components and vehicles, plus an emergency
submarine escape capsule design, are presented here.

Transhuman Space Technical Appendix Additions

In addition to the basic setting modifications, the following rules were used
to design vehicles:

Supercavitating Lines: The designer may ignore the ×1.05 weight
multiplier.Very Fine Lines: Not normally available (at least, not for free!).Hull Shapes: A simplified hull shape system is to assign a ×1.2
volume multiplier for "cylindrical" hulls -- submersible hulls are already
cylindrical and do get no benefit from this option. Multiply by ×2 if
spherical.Submersible Design Option: This is not required in Transhuman
Space unless you wish to simplify the design process. Instead,
purchase ballast tanks as storage tanks with a ×2 cost multiplier to
cover vents and trim ducts.Plastic Armor: This has an M of 0.1 and a C of 0.5. For every 10
points of damage it sustains (regardless of whether it protects or not) one
point of DR is destroyed afterward.Roll Stabilizers: Replace with Fin Stabilizers, multiply surface area
by 0.01 to get weight, and 0.2 to get cost.Periscopes: Build these as turrets but increase rotation space by 10%
for every foot of length it can extend.Snorkel Tubes: These are free if the vessel has submarine lines
(either type).Sonar Communicators: Divide range by 100 rather then the 10 specified
in GURPS Vehicles Expansion I.Sonar: Sonars use conformal arrays and distributed transducer arrays
for full coverage. Flat sonars that cover a single hemisphere are available
at half weight, volume, cost and power. If range is over 1 mile then
square the range before multiplying by the values below. New sonars
multiply weight and volume by 0.5, but cost is multiplied by 4.

TL

Type

Weight

Volume

Cost

Power

Old

Active Sonar

40

0.8

$4,000

2

The towed array and dipping sonar options are technically available but not
recommended for use.

Passive Sonar Targeting: Passive sonar can be used for targeting.Magnetic Anomaly Detectors (MAD): This technology was approaching
obsolescence in regards to antisubmarine warfare by late TL7 and had hit a
wall in the physical limits of their detection capability. In TL9 it is an
interesting toy mainly useful for picking up emag signature spikes. It will
not detect submarines (even if they are made of steel the signature
reduction is such that it's a fool's game).Sonar IFF: Can be used, but active sonar can work as a sonar IFF out
to twice its normal range (this does not impede normal function).Bilge Pumps: You don't get free bilge pumps.Diving Controls: You get a free extra set if you purchase duplicate
maneuver controls.Planing: Multiply Ath by 1.2 to see if the vessel can plane if it
has a lifting body hull.Submerged Hydrodynamic Drag: Equal to (surface area ×2.5)/Ls.Crush Pressure: As in GURPS Atlantis but the shape
modifier is 6 for submersible lines and 3 otherwise. Spheres have a shape
modifier of 24 and cylinders have a shape modifier of 6. Only watertight
compartments need to calculate a crush pressure. Note that sonars must be in
contact with the working fluid in order to function so they are usually
placed in a flooded section of the hull.

375 lbs./VSP Flotation, are you mad!?

There's a method to this madness. In Under Pressure,
flotation rating is hull volume in VSP multiplied by 375 lbs. This is equal
to 62.5 lbs. (base flotation in lbs./cf) times 5 (cf in one VSP) times
1.2 (volume multiplier for Average/Submarine Lines). This stays constant so
that if your vessel changes to No Hydrodynamic Lines it has the right
flotation rating and you don't recalculate based on your Lines. This
simplifies a bit of GURPS Vehicles arcana and works in most
situations. In my opinion, a 100-VSP ship is 100 VSP even if it
has less volume usable because of hydrodynamic shaping -- it just has the
equivalent of broken storage for internal components. This should answer
puzzled gearheads scratching their heads over why that value was used rather then 312.5 lbs.

Optional Rule: Larger and Smaller Hydrofoils

There is normally no allowance made for smaller hydrofoils and there is no
advantage to using larger foils other then the increased volume and HPs. For
additional depth to the design system, any size hydrofoil may be used as
long as the size does not exceed that of the main hull.

Hydrofoil Variable: Divide the chosen assembly's surface area by that of the
normal hydrofoil for that hull type. If the variable is less then 0.2 it is
too small to function. Otherwise modify the following performance
statistics.

Variable

Hydrofoiling

hMR

hSR

0.2-0.5

×1.5

-2

-2

0.51-0.8

×1.2

-1

-1

0.81-0.9

×1.1

--

-1

0.91-1.2

×1

--

--

1.21-1.5

×0.9

-1

+1

over 1.5

×0.8

-2

+2

Hydrofoiling is the multiplier to the required minimum speed to begin
hydrofoiling.

The hMR and hSR modifiers are how many rows you move down (negative)
or up (positive) if using the extra detail option for hydrofoil
maneuverability.

New Hull Types

Type

VSP

Wt.

Cost

HP

Area

Top

Size

Stupidly Large Arcoblock

45,000,000

1,080,000,000

M$13,500

3,765,000

2,510,000

840,000

+15

Superdimensional Fortress

90,000,000

2,160,000,000

M$27,000

6,000,000

4,000,000

1,330,000

+16

These designs are far too large to mount realistic hydrofoils, but
hey, you can always build some in GURPS Vehicles and see what
happens.

Standard Containers

Cargo containers are built with old extra-light aluminum structures and DR 2
steel armor; the structure is waterproofed and will normally float even with
a full load. All have a Complexity 2 computer and one or more short-range
(10 mi.) radio transponders, forming a manifest tracking and emergency
recovery system. The computer tracks everything in the storage area using
v-tags and monitors access to the container (and broadcasts an alarm if
there is an unauthorized entry). The computer can write new records but
cannot delete or modify them. There are ports for inspection cyberswarms to
gain access to the containers, even if they are sealed. When received, the
contents are checked against the records from the originator, the shipping
company, and the container manifest to look for discrepancies.

Sealing: $5,600 for large containers, $11,200 for very large.Reefers: Containers with climate controls for cargo (-30°F to
230°F). This costs $10,000 and requires 10 kW for a Large container,
double for Very Large. This includes a D cell (5 kWh) incorporated into the
frame, used during transfers. When on board a ship or in dock, reefers are
plugged into external power.

Note that Container Cells can hold either two TEUs or one FEU container.

Vehicle Designs

Wright-Waterman C1200 LASH

The Wright-Waterman C1200 is a mid-sized "lighters aboard ship"
(LASH) vessel designed to operate without significant local port facilities
or expensive fuel. It carries a small fleet of lighters to help offload
cargo, and has numerous cranes located around the hull, including an
aft-mounted
loading crane with 80-ton capacity used to load and unload lighters from
their storage section. The payload assumes the lighters are unloaded, this
vessel operates like a hybrid LASH or SEABEE (Sea Barge) ship, loading and
unloading containers before taking them aboard. They can be loaded if
necessary but the limit is the crane and possibly the limits of buoyancy.

The C1200 requires the Shiphandling (Steamer) skill. It has
computerized controls. Standard payload includes 48 empty lighters (see
below) stored in
an aft 115,200 VSP cargo hold and 2,000 loaded Very Large containers in the
cells. The external cradles are usually empty, but can hold tugboats or a
launch for the crew. A standard crew is 10 sailors.

Komar MLV-3 Lighter

This is a boxy unmanned vehicle either carried aboard LASH ships for
transporting cargo from ship to shore, or used as a general cargo barge.
Standard payload is 10 Very Large containers: 4 in the cargo hold and 6 on
the top deck, stacked 3×2. Requires the Shiphandling (Steamer) skill.
It has computerized controls. $193,180.

SafetyONE ERS-5 Emergency Capsule

This is an emergency system deployed on some large submersibles. They became
popular after a string of gruesome accidents with civilian and military
submarines in the 2020s. They allow the crew to reach the surface from
standard civil operating depths, at which point the emergency transponder
activates and the radio can be used. More capable, but significantly more
expensive, systems are used on deep-diving military and civilian
submersibles.

A small cargo area holds minimal emergency supplies. It has no controls and
simply drifts with the currents on the surface. Uses the extra detail armor
volume rule. $28,735.

GLUB GLUB! Driving Underwater

Sealed vehicles can operate underwater by simply driving around on the
sea floor, a few with ballast tanks can do this intentionally -- others just
hope they sink in shallow water!

Some underwater areas are completely impassable by driving, and even the
nice areas are quagmires -- halve off-road speed unless it has
extremely-low ground pressure (note that current flotation rating will reduce
the effective loaded weight for this) or has legs. A vehicle with high, very
high or extremely high ground pressures will get stuck if the a Driving-4
roll is failed, roll every 10 minutes. Getting unstuck requires a Driving-5
roll, and a failure by more then 3 means it's really stuck and needs
outside help.

Appendix Out-Takes

The Aquatic Vehicle Modular Design Sequence (AVMDS) is the second
modular system in Transhuman Space that is based directly on
GURPS Vehicles -- the other being the Wheeled Vehicle
Modular Design System (WVMDS) in Transhuman Space: In The Well.
(The spacecraft design system in the core book is sufficiently different in
scope and format that it's not included.) The systems are directly
compatible, and some components were left out because they appear in
In The Well.

Using the WVMDS and AVMDS Together: There's one issue that needs to
be brought up immediately -- without using GURPS Vehicles there
is no way to determine how big the wheel subassemblies are for the hull types!
So your dreams of an off-road wheeled Large Arcoblock are dashed without a
bit of work. But it's simple to use components back and forth.

Design: The bodies in the WVMDS can be used in AVMDS with no
changes, just remember that the hulls in Under Pressure
already include hydrodynamic lines -- WVMDS bodies are hulls with No
Hydrodynamic Lines but they can be given lines (divide volume by 1.2 for
Average lines). For hydrofoils, pick a set for a hull that is of comparable
volume to the WVMDS body.

Performance: The most obvious place to start using the AVMDS to
calculate water performance for ground vehicles that can float
(you've waterproofed their structure or sealed their hull). When determining
water speed, legs and wheeled drivetrains with off-road wheels generate
2 lbs. of aquatic thrust for ever kW of motive power. Determine crush
pressures normally.

The Last Word

"Scientists today were celebrating after seven years of genetic research
produced the first whale that could talk. Humanity awaits what wisdom they
could learn from the whales."

"The Whale Speech project was terminated after the subject rattled off an
endless list of millions of atrocities perfectly recorded in Whalesong
memory for the past 1,000 years. She was still talking when the voicebox
was deactivated."